


first kiss

by killmongersgurl



Series: redeemed!softboi [9]
Category: Black Panther (2018)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-17
Updated: 2018-12-17
Packaged: 2019-09-20 16:48:57
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,489
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17026443
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/killmongersgurl/pseuds/killmongersgurl





	first kiss

“Has my cousin asked you out yet?”

The little flask you held slipped through your fingers, bouncing on the tiled floor of Shuri’s laboratory as its contents spilled. You ignored the princess’ sharp cackle as you watched the purple liquid spread, with wide eyes and a tumbling stomach. You brushed it all aside with a shake of your head and a shrug, springing into action as you grabbed a paper towel and fell to your knees to clean the mess up.

“Did I say something wrong?” T’Challa called out from the door. He stood on his toes, leaning forward a bit to observe the mess before a slight grimace deranged his face. He quickly made his way into the laboratory and to you, kneeling to pick the flask up and set it onto the table. “I didn’t mean to startle you. I was merely curious.”

Shuri, not nearly as apologetic as her brother, simply continued to laugh as she took notes on her clipboard. “Don’t worry, brother, you did nothing wrong. In fact, you did very well by not saying  _his_  name. My lovely assistant’s mess would have been much worse.”

You glared at the back of her head as you stood to toss the trash away. It was only the back of her head and she couldn’t see it, but you just knew that snarky little genius could feel it inside of that massive brain of hers. That growing smirk on her face was proof of that. “Very funny.”

“Thank you,” she sighed as her laughter dwindled down. “I know.”

T’Challa looked between the two of you suspiciously before nodding. “Ah, very well. I believe I understand.”

“Do you, brother?”

“I have given…” The king stopped to look from side to side, before leaning into your space to address you directly. “ _Him_  good advice. I don’t understand what  _his_  problem is or what is taking  _him_  so long.

Shuri slapped a hand onto her stomach as she fell forward with laughter, which you took as your cue to get back to work. You pursed your lips to keep your smile from spreading as you picked the flask back up, but once T’Challa’s low chuckle touched your ears, you clapped a hand over your face with a laugh of your own.

When rumors began to spread regarding the Wakandan king’s intentions of starting a new outreach center in the next town over, you found it more than just a  _little_  hard to believe. What did a third world country like Wakanda have to offer anybody, when they barely had the funds to help themselves? And even if these people did have something to offer, what would they gain from setting up in the hood?

About a week later, you saw him in the news: King T’Challa. A stoic man with regal features surrounded by an army of formidable women, speaking and answering questions about things like vibranium, coming out of the shadows, and everything you had mulled over yourself. The next day, you looked them up online and sent your resume over half-jokingly and half-curiously, thinking nothing of it until they called you back for an interview.

 _Assistant to the Head_ , was your official title, as it had been for about a year. Of all the things you had expected from this job, you hadn’t expected for it to be the best one you’d had thus far. You certainly hadn’t expected to become such close friends with the king and his sister. Or developing a little crush on their cousin.

But you digressed.

You slid your hand off of your face with a short groan and set the flask back down. This obviously would not be a day for work. “Y’all ain’t shit, and you know it.”

T’Challa simply clapped a good-natured hand onto your shoulder, gently shaking you with a laugh that made you giggle. “As I was saying, I believe I gave my cousin the advice he was searching for.”

You bit a smile back at the thought of Erik asking about you. “You shouldn’t be here speaking for your cousin. He should be here speaking for himself.”

Shuri actually stopped taking notes to point her pen at you. “I personally believe that my cousin is afraid of you. You’re the only one who actually challenges him during arguments. If you requested to beat him up, I’m sure he would let you make him bleed.” She shook her head and waved a hand at you as she resumed her note-taking. “Ah, he is too afraid. Just let me know when he asks you to have his children. I think he’ll finally be ready then.”

“ _Shuri_.”

“Yes,” the king mused as if his sister said nothing at all. He stroked his beard. “I’m quite sure that my cousin is absolutely enamored with you. He has mentioned more than once that he likes to see you. He likes to see you walk, more specifically. Something about— What was it? ‘That thang jumping.’”

A brow jumped. You turned to meet T’Challa’s eyes, only to find him stroking his beard again as he looked to the ceiling in thought. “Oh, really?”

“Yes,” T’Challa continued. He tapped his chin, shaking his head before meeting your eyes with a shrug. “I’m unsure of its meaning. He refuses to elaborate or explain.”

Shuri cleared her throat.

T’Challa looked to her, shrinking under her glare as he looked between the two of you. “Have I… Was I  _not_  supposed to say that?”

As if Bast herself found the entire situation comical, Erik swaggered into the laboratory.

Your breath hitched in your throat at the mere sight of him approaching you, barely noticing just how quickly T’Challa released your shoulder before stepping away from you with his hands clasped at his back. This man confused you, and you were so doubtful of where you stood with him. He always made sure to visit you in the laboratory whenever he was done with whatever work needed to be handled on the other side of the center. He did this several times a day, so much so that Shuri felt compelled to type up a schedule for him in order to reduce the number of disturbances. He called you every night to make sure that his voice was the last thing you heard before falling asleep, and vice versa. He did the same every morning. But now you were hearing about him talking about your body? With his cousin?  _The king_?

Erik leaned forward to rest his elbows onto your table, looking up to meet your eyes with something close to a smile. “Ay, I ain’t seen you all day.”

You picked your trusty flask back up, holding it before his eyes. “That might be because I’ve been in here working.”

“It’s also because this is your first visit of the day, cousin!” Shuri called out as she picked another clipboard up and crossed something off. “You’re actually a bit early, but it’s fine. Try not to do it again. Just stick to the schedule.”

T’Challa snickered.

Erik ignored them both to keep his eyes on you as he played with a few tubes. You bit at your lip to keep your growing smile at bay and grabbed the tubes from his hand. You ignored your tumbling stomach when your fingers touched.

“Aren’t you going to greet your cousins?” you asked.

A little smirk touched his lips. “Little nigga. Moderately-smaller-than-me-nigga.”

T’Challa closed his eyes and shook his head.

Shuri, however, raised a hand as she continued to read through her clipboard. “Hello, big nigga.”

The sound of T’Challa’s quiet and distressed sigh made you snort. “What can I do for you today, Mr. Stevens? Have you come to argue with me about your horrid taste in anime? And lose? Again?”

Erik actually laughed. This was a sound you weren’t yet accustomed to hearing from him, but it still made your stomach turn with glee because you’d been the one to draw it out of him. “Nah, we can save that for another day.”

You raised a brow and tapped your chin. “Oh, I think I know why you’re here.”

“Do you?”

“You’re here to see that thang jumping behind me.”

Erik’s face fell.

Shuri doubled over with laughter.

T’Challa’s mouth fell open. “Oh, is  _that_  what that means? I mean—“ He interrupted himself with a sheepish chuckle, slowly stepping away from you and Erik. “Heh, I just remembered something important! Very, very important! I must attend a meeting or something!”

Shuri snorted. “Or something, brother? Yes, the black panther lives. In ignorance.”

T’Challa looked to her with a scowl. “Yes, and you are needed. Royal siblings only. I apologize, Y/N and Erik, but we must go. Immediately.”

“No! I must go  _nowhere_!” Shuri waved the clipboard in his face. “I cannot just leave my own laboratory while our cousin is in here! He is going to stay here  _beyond_  his allotted visiting time if he is left unsupervised! No work will be complet—“

T’Challa threw Shuri over his shoulder and made his way out.

The laboratory was silent as you and Erik watched each other, before he finally looked away with a soft groan. He pursed his lips, clenching and releasing his jaw. “Listen, I didn’t—“

“You don’t have to lie. I know my ass is fat. I just thought that…” He met your eyes and you looked away. A sigh slipped past your lips as you remembered the tubes in your hand. You set them down to pick that  _damned flask_  back up. “Never mind. Forget it, Erik.”

Erik pushed himself to stand upright and he made his way around the table to you. He watched as you began to fill flask up with a thick, purple liquid. “Wait, wait, wait. Come on, don’t do that. I’m sorry, okay? I was just talkin’ to my cousin.”

“I get that you were talking, but you shouldn’t talk that way about me.” You hesitated before looking to him. “I didn’t think  _you_  would. I thought that we were—“

His brows jumped. Almost like he was surprised.

All of a sudden, your face was hot. Of course he was surprised. You stepped away from him with a shake of your head, taking the flask with you as you walked to the burners. “Ugh. Never mind.”

He followed after you in silence, watching as you worked and ignored him. The second you set the flask down, he grabbed you by the wrist and forced you to face him. His eyes were hard and a bit intense, and honestly, it was making it a bit difficult for you to breathe. A lump formed in your throat, one that you chose not to swallow because you were sure that you’d choke. You refused to embarrass yourself any further in front of him.

“I like you. I mean, I’m really feelin’ you,” Erik confessed, his voice low and hushed. It made your eyes flutter as he took a step closer to you, crowding you with his body. You could feel the heat emanating from him, along with his delicious scent. “I was talkin’ out of my ass and I shouldn’t have said that about you to him. I shouldn’t talk that way about you to anybody. Not you.”

“You shouldn’t talk that way about anybody.”

“Especially not you.”

You finally swallowed.

“I’m sorry.”

You were suddenly all too aware of just how close you were. For some reason, this made you lean into his space as you took a sharp breath in. “It’s not okay, but I forgive you.”

He nodded and took a moment to watch you. He licked his lips. “I like what we got goin’ on.”

“Me too.”

“I’m not tryin’ to lose whatever this is. Not over my mouth.”

“What happens as a result of  _your_  mouth is  _your_  fault.”

“You gon’ stop wearin’ those jeans and those dresses because of me?”

You resisted the urge to roll your eyes. “No, nigga. You’re not that important.”

He nodded again, slowly and a bit deliberately as he continued to watch you. His grip on your wrist softened and his brows relaxed, the gold caps in the bottom row of his teeth peeking out to greet you. “I’d like to see where we could take this, if you want to do the same. Can I take you out sometime?”

Your stomach flipped at his request. He said it all so  _gently_ , and it was so strange. This was  _Erik Killmonger Stevens_. Despite how you felt for him, you couldn’t deny the things you’d heard about him. You had seen for yourself what he was capable of, yet there he was, handling this conversation and you like two delicate pieces of glass.

You nodded before you could catch yourself. He released his grip on your wrist, taking you by the chin to pull you into a kiss. You gave into him and to his lips with a soft sigh, your eyes falling shut as you grabbed for the front of his clothing. His lips moved slowly and patiently against yours, a kiss filled with sweet bites and nibbles, and an almost lazy tongue. This moment had been a long time coming, and admittedly, it was everything you hadn’t expected to receive from such a man. And this made it perfect.

He pulled away from you, but not before leaving one last kiss onto your lips. As your eyes fluttered open to meet his, he wiped the corners of your lips with the padding of his thumb. All you could do was watch as he did this.

“Killmonger,” you practically croaked. He didn’t seem to notice. If he did, he clearly didn’t care. His only response was a low grunt, one that made you swallow. “I thought you were supposed to be all tough.”

“Can’t be mean with you.”

“Is that part of T’Challa’s advice?”

Erik sucked his teeth with a bit of a dismissive shrug. “That prissy nigga might know what he’s talkin’ about, but no. I’m soft with you ‘cuz I like you. I like you a lot.” He released his hold on your face; you already missed his touch. “Can I call you tonight?”

A little smile tugged at your lips as you nodded. He returned the nod, taking your hand into his and gently gripping before making his way out. All you could do was smile at the rhythm of his shoulders before your phone rang.

It was Shuri.

You swiped to the right and held the phone to your ear. “Shuri? What’s wrong? Is everything okay—“

“Y/N! Brother and I saw  _everything_! You must divulge to us the details of your date after it happens—“

You ended the phone call with a roll of your eyes as you prepared to get back to work. But you couldn’t keep the smile at bay, not even if you tried.


End file.
